China issued new rules to block its companies and citizens from having to follow \u201cunjustified\u201d foreign laws and measures, in its latest riposte to U.S. restrictions on businesses like ByteDance Ltd.\u2019s TikTok.<\/p>\n
The rules on \u201ccounteracting unjustified extra-territorial application\u201d of foreign legislation and other measures are effective immediately and allow authorities to ban the imposition of other jurisdictions\u2019 laws on Chinese entities when it deems them inappropriate, the Ministry of Commerce said in a statement on its website on Saturday. The measures aim to protect \u201cnormal trade\u201d and other activities, it said.<\/p>\n
The Chinese move comes as outgoing U.S. President Donald Trump extends his campaign against Chinese compaanies in his final days in office, further straining ties between the world\u2019s two largest economies. Trump earlier this month banned transactions with Chinese apps like Ant Group Co.\u2019s Alipay and Tencent Holdings Ltd.\u2019s digital wallets, adding to a prior push to force the sale of TikTok by ByteDance. The New York Stock Exchange has also become involved, heeding calls from the Trump administration to delist certain Chinese companies traded on its bourse.<\/p>\n
Beijing also repeatedly pressured Canada to release Meng Wanzhou, daughter of Huawei Technologies Co.\u2019s billionaire founder Ren Zhengfei, after she was detained by Canadian authorities over a year ago under the request of the U.S. government.<\/p>\n
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The growing list of improper use of foreign laws overseas has \u201ccontinuously disrupted the rules-based multilateral trade system and caused negative impact on the global economic recovery,\u201d the commerce ministry said in a separate statement, citing Han Liyu, a law professor at the Renmin University of China.<\/p>\n
A new working mechanism involving the commerce ministry and the top planning agency will oversee the assessment of such cases, and decisions will be based on considerations like whether international law has been violated and the potential impact on China\u2019s sovereignty and the \u201clegitimate rights\u201d of Chinese entities, according to the statement.<\/p>\n
Companies and citizens can sue in Chinese courts for compensation of losses incurred from foreign rulings deemed as unjustified under the new rules, the ministry said.<\/p>\n
China isn\u2019t unique in using such measures, as similar legislation has been in place in the European Union and countries like Canada and Mexico, Han said.<\/p>\n